​National Wildlife Day is a day that is celebrated biannually on February 22 and September 4 to bring awareness to institutions that allow for the conservation of endangered species, and those species that are endangered. Started in 2005 by animal behaviorist and philanthropist Colleen Paige, the goal of celebrating National Wildlife Day twice per year brings double the awareness to the importance of the conservation of endangered species and support to institutions that contribute to this idea. This day is different than World Wildlife Day, previously celebrated on March 3 of this year, in that World Wildlife Day is the anniversary of the signing of the convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) of wild fauna and flora, a document maintaining the survival of species that are internationally traded [1,2].
With National Wildlife Day, we will highlight three species at the zoo that are endangered and what we do to protect them.